This following information comes from Jim McGraw with U.S. Coast Guard Heartland Safe Boating. “A boat is a hole in the water into which you pour money.”
While not all boats are expensive to own and maintain, money is a constraint on most recreational boating. While the high-tech signaling devices such as a 406 MHz personal locator beacon (PLB) are highly effective, they may cost more than a boat owner is willing to spend. Let’s talk about the low-cost signaling equipment that can make a life-saving difference in many accidents.
Many commercial passenger vessels (depending on size, number of pax, and location) are required to equip every passenger personal flotation device (PFD) with four kinds of gear to increase the likelihood of finding persons in the water (PIW). None of these are expensive and all can make a life-saving difference in some situations:
Bright color- A PFD in a bright color such as yellow or orange can make a PIW much easier to see in daytime. A black, navy blue, or charcoal PFD may look cool out of the water… but they are essentially invisible when in the water. Many inflatable PFDs have a fashionable outer cover that reveals a brightly colored bladder when inflated.
Reflective Tape – Last summer I participated in Man Overboard (MOB) recovery drills at night for the first time. I was shocked at how very difficult it was to see a human sized target in the water in the dark. When our Oscar (rescue dummy) was equipped with reflective tape, the difference in visibility was quite dramatic!
Whistle – A whistle is a powerful way to be findable! Our voices tire quickly. A whistle is easy to use and can often be heard long before a person can be seen. The best whistles are plastic rather than metal (to prevent freezing to lips in cold weather) and are pea-less, as the pea often causes poor performance when the whistle is flooded with water.
Light – A light can absolutely be lifesaving in PIW situations at night! There are a variety of lights designed for attachment to PFDs. Some of these lights will activate automatically upon immersion in water. Many of these lights will be marked with a USCG approval statement. That approval is not required for recreational boats, but you may desire that approval.
Every time U.S. Coast Guard small boat crews get underway, each crew member is carrying all of the above (and more, such as a knife and PLB) on their person!
Every year there are numerous deaths from persons going into the water from small vessels near shore. In these cases a brightly colored PFD, with reflective tape, a whistle, and light can be the difference between life and death.


Thanks to Sherrie, we will always remember safe boating is no accident! Pre-planning before even making it to the water’s edge can help you have a great day on the water.

If you would like to learn more about vessel safety checks, please contact Steve Hults, Staff Officer for Vessel Examinations at steve.hults@uscgaux.net.

Please contact us for more information about our safe boating classes or learning more about getting involved in the Auxiliary, check out our website at www.uscgaux.net follow us on FaceBook @ Apalachee Bay Flotilla 12 or contact our Flotilla Commander Phil Hill at pnkkhill2000@yahoo.com.

The Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed civilian volunteer component of the U.S. Coast Guard and supports the Coast Guard in nearly all mission areas. The Auxiliary was created by Congress in 1939. For more information, please visit www.cgaux.org.